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Dagelijks archief 17 mei 2017

South African VP Cyril Ramaphosa is leading over 40 other government officials in a solidarity hunger strike

Cyril Ramaphosa, Vice-president of South Africa on 14 May, 2017

One of South Africa’s two vice presidents is going on a 24-hour hunger strike today in solidarity with the 1,600 Palestinian prisoners protesting at their conditions in Israeli jails.

Cyril Ramaphosa, explained the director of the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation, is the politician in South Africa most supportive of the prisoners’ demands. “Ramaphosa’s solidarity is, therefore, very important,” explained Nishan Balton. “A number of government officials are expected to take part in the strike with Ramaphosa,” he added.

Many South Africans are participating in campaigns to support Palestinian hunger strikers by initiating the #DignityStrikeSA hashtag on social media.

Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails began their mass hunger strike on 17 April, led by Marwan Barghouti. They are demanding an end to inhumane conditions and administrative detention, under which Palestinians are held with neither charge nor trial for renewable indefinite periods.

Many others are also on a solidarity hunger strike in South Africa, including:

Most of illegal Israeli settlements initially started as small outposts, then legalised retroactively

This is at least the third illegal settlement to have been built since the beginning of the year. One was built in Nablus and the other was built in Ramallah

Pre-empting visit of US President Donald Trump to the region, Israeli settlers have started building new settlement in north-eastern West Bank city of Tubas.

The Palestinian official, who monitors settlement activity in the northern West Bank, Aref Daraghma, said that a group of the Israeli Jewish settlers had installed mobile homes and solar panels in the area where the village of Khirbet Al-Sweida once stood in the northern Jordan Valley.

Daraghma added that the settlers had also brought construction equipment and material, and begun digging a pool in the area.

Previously, the Israeli occupation forces forcefully evacuated the Palestinians residents who lived in Khirbet Al-Sweida, clearly noting a need for building an Israeli settlement in the area.

A spokesperson for the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), said: “The constructions in this area were illegally built without the required approval of the qualified authorities.”

This is at least the third illegal settlement to have been built since the beginning of the year. One was built in Nablus and the other was built in Ramallah.

It is worth mentioning that this is how most of the illegal Israeli settlements were initially started.

‘There is not going to be a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders,’ Shaked said.

Instead of the Palestinian state, she suggested: “You can give, as they say, an ‘economic peace on steroids to the Palestinians, build industrial zones there, improve their quality of life. Let’s do this”

Israeli Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked said on Monday that “there is no chance for a Palestinian state.”

Shaked was interviewed by the Israeli Ynet News and she forwarded her message to the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The extremist Jewish minister asked Netanyahu to pass this message to the American President Donald Trump during his scheduled visit to the region on May 22.

Ynet News reported her exactly saying: “The message that Netanyahu has to convey to Trump is that there is no chance for a Palestinian state at the moment.”

She stressed that “the gaps between Israel and the Palestinians are currently too great for a political agreement to be reached, there is not going to be a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders.”

The woman, who has been known for her notorious remarks regarding the Palestinian issue, continued: “There is an opportunity when a president such as Trump, who is willing to take courageous steps, to think outside the box and advance a large economic agreement with the more moderate Arab countries and with the Palestinians.

“We can promote common industrial infrastructures and areas that all citizens here in the Middle East will enjoy.”

Instead of the Palestinian state, she suggested: “You can give, as they say, an ‘economic peace on steroids to the Palestinians, build industrial zones there, improve their quality of life. Let’s do this.”

76 hunger striking Palestinian prisoners are moved to hospitals from Ofer prison

Seventy-six hunger-striking Palestinian prisoners held in the Ofer Israeli prison have been transferred to hospitals due to the deterioration of their health, the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs (CDA) reported today.

A further 36 hunger strikers had already been transferred to the Hadrim field hospital yesterday.

Around 1,600 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails have been on a hunger strike for the past 30 days. The strike began on 17 April which marks Palestinian Prisoners’ Day.

The prisoners’ primary demands include more frequent and lengthy family visits, better detention conditions such as improved medical care, and an end to solitary confinement and administrative detention – detention without charge or trial.

Many international human rights and advocacy groups have mobilised in solidarity with the prisoner movement.

Secretary-General of the Syrian Coalition Nazir Hakim called on the United Kingdom to support the Geneva negotiations to bring about a political solution in line with the Geneva Communiqué of 2012 and the UN Security Council resolutions 2118 and 2254 calling for the establishment of a transitional governing body without Assad or his inner circle.

Hakim was speaking during a meeting with political officer Tom Shepherd and Nebras Hassan from the British consulate in Turkey. Shepherd praised the plan of action outlined by the new presidential body.

The two sides discussed the latest political and field developments, especially the sixth round of talks that began today in Geneva, Switzerland.

“British support for the political solution is very necessary in view of its influential role and its weight as a superpower,” Hakim said. The meeting was also attended by members of the Coalition’s political committee Salah Hamawi and Safwan Jandali.

The two sides stressed the importance of greater cooperation and coordination among the Syrian opposition institutions, pointing to the important role played by the United Kingdom in supporting the Syrian Coalition and the Syrian revolution since its early days.

The meeting also stressed the fact that the Coalition should take the lead role in delivering humanitarian assistance to those in need across Syria through its executive arms, namely the Syrian Interim Government (SIG) and Assistance Coordination Unit (ACU) and the local councils.

The next upcoming meeting between the two sides will focus on the humanitarian issues and the support provided by the British government in the areas of civil defense, education, local councils, and the free police force.

Hakim noted that the Coalition’s new plan of action needs support from all friends of the Syrian people.

Israeli Jews visit the Western Wall to pray in Jerusalem on October 19, 2016

A US official who is making preparations for President Donald Trump’s visit to the Middle East next week rejected a request that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accompany Trump when he visits the Western Wall saying it is “not your territory. It’s part of the West Bank”, Israeli TV reported today.

According to the Times of Israel, Netanyahu’s office was “shocked” by the comments and has asked the Trump administration about the incident. It added: “Israel is certain that the comment contradicts President Trump’s policy.”

The US delegation reportedly rejected the request for Netanyahu to join the visit, saying it would be “a private visit” by the president and that he would go on his own.

The Israelis then asked if a TV crew could accompany him on the visit to which the senior American official responded:

What are you talking about? It’s none of your business. It’s not even part of your responsibility. It’s not your territory. It’s part of the West Bank.

Trump is expected to visit Israel and the Palestinian territories on 22-23 May. No serving US president has ever visited the Western Wall, because US policy has been that the final status of Jerusalem has yet to be resolved in Israeli-Palestinian negotiations.